Have a Heart
by Dragoni
Summary: SongFic. Shounen ai. 2+1. Companion Piece to "I Love You, Goodbye."


Title: Have a Heart  
Author: Dragoni  
Song: "Have a Heart" by Celine Dion  
Warnings: Songfic. Shounen ai. 2+1.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. The boys belong to ... er... Bandai, I think. THe song is Celine Dion's.  
Notes:  
~...~ - Lyrics  
"..." - Spoken  
/.../ - Thoughts  
*...* - Emphasis  
  
~Lying in bed alone~  
~Thinkin' about how much I need you~  
~Oh, give me one more chance to see you again~  
  
A sudden shift of the bed woke the ever-alert gundam pilot. He waited silently a moment, listening for a clue to what was happening. The soft rustle of clothes being donned answered his question.  
  
Heero was leaving.  
  
He lay awake, listening as the door creaked in its normal way, listening as the catch snicked closed. If Heero wanted to leave, there was nothing Duo could do to stop him.  
  
A sudden pang of rejection caused him to wince slightly. It had been too good to be true. He should have known it. What would Heero Yuy, Mr. All-About-The-Mission ever want with *him*?  
  
At least he got one night. /More than I deserved.../ He shook the thought out of his head. /Maybe I'm overreacting. Maybe he'll be back... soon.../ The thought was not much of a comfort, but it was enough to allow him to fall back into a restless sleep.  
  
~If only I'd have known~  
~It was the last time I'd be with you~  
~I would've held on and never let you go~  
  
The morning sun shone through the small window of the safehouse, waking the small American. He turned over with a yawn, reaching over for Heero's comforting presence... and met with air.  
  
/Ah, shit. That's right./ The previous night's abandonment had been forgotten during the time he'd spent with the sandman, but the memories quickly resurfaced. /I'd hoped he'd be back with the morning.../ He allowed the wistful thought to trail off, a sick feeling settling in his stomach.  
  
/I should have stopped him. I should have asked him to stay./ The thought lingered as he dressed and headed to the kitchen to get breakfast.  
  
Quatre passed him in the halls, looking mildly surprised that the American had actually woken before noon. "Good morning, Duo! You're awake early today... If you'd like breakfast, Wufei cooked this morning. Just don't tease him about his hair. He left it down today."  
  
Duo nodded an acknowledgement, studiously ignoring the concerned look that crossed the blonde's face, knowing that the little empath had picked up on his rotten mood. He forced a jovial grin onto his face, trying to reassure Quatre and knowing he didn't fool him at all.  
  
Quatre simply shrugged and continued down the hall. If Duo didn't want to talk, he wouldn't press him.  
  
Chorus  
~~Baby just have a heart~~  
~~I'm begging you~~  
~~Let me show you how much I need you~~  
  
After breakfast Duo checked his computer, logging on to check for messages from the scientists. No missions, but... What was that?  
  
He opened the strange email, recognizing the sender instantly as one of Heero's accounts. He read the short message twice, unable to believe the words. Heero'd left on a mission. And wouldn't be coming back. Duo felt his heart crack, unable to believe that it was happening *again.* He sighed miserably. He should have known. He was cursed to lose everyone he loved. Father Maxwell, Sister Helen, Solo... now Heero.  
  
/No!/ His mind cried out against the unfairness of the world. He felt the unfamiliar tickling of tears in the back of his throat and choked them back. It would not end like this. /Goddamnit, if it takes everything I have.../ The thought trailed off as he sent a reply to the message, pleading Heero to return.  
  
~~Baby just have a heart~~  
~~This much is true~~  
~~I miss your touch~~  
~~I'm still in love with you~~  
  
Duo lay awake in bed. It had only been one night, but... He sighed, depressed. It had felt so natural to sleep with his arms around the taller Wing pilot. He could almost smell Heero here beside him, if he closed his eyes... that strange mix of metal and the clean military soap he favored.  
  
He tossed restlessly, completely frustrated with himself. It had been entirely *too* easy to get used to the gentle warmth of another body. If only there was some way...!  
  
A half-formed notion pulled the braided one to his feet. He crept silently through the safehouse, hesitating before the room Heero had claimed as his own. The moment's indecision disappeared as he opened the door, bringing the sparse room fully into view. He took a deep breath, not sure why he was so nervous. /It's not like it's a crime or anything.../ The thought wasn't nearly as reassuring as it should have been.  
  
He scuttled across the moonlit expanse to the bed, grabbing one of the pillows that lay neatly tucked in underneath perfectly smooth covers. He raised it to his nose, sniffing experimentally. Satisfied that enough of Heero's scent remained on the fluffy object, he returned stealthily to his room, his pilfered prize clutched protectively to his chest.  
  
He lay down in the small bed again, hugging the pillow to his chest, and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.  
  
~Here comes another day~  
~I don't know if I can make it~  
~Oh, I just realized it's so lonely being free~  
  
The weeks passed slowly, despite the myriad of typical seek-and-destroy missions that peppered it. They took longer, now that he searched feverishly for the easily recognizable Wing Gundam to show at each destination.  
  
He did not appear.  
  
The constant wariness and lack of communication were taking a heavy toll on the cheerful, noisy Shinigami. Striving hard to make the others think nothing wrong, he grinned wider, joked more, laughed louder...  
  
But to anyone who knew what to look for, the signs of strain were frighteningly clear. Too many teeth gleamed when he grinned, when none of the light reached his eyes. His comments were more cutting; his laughter almost manic.  
  
Every night, he wrote Heero. He had long since stopped begging for the Japanese pilot's return. All he asked now was some sort of simple contact.  
  
~Runnin' from the pain~  
~I'm never gonna shake it~  
~Oh, how I need you to take it from me~  
  
Chorus  
  
Duo climbed wearily down from the Deathscythe. The mission today had been tough. He'd been sent alone - that had been bad enough to start with. He preferred having one of the other pilots there to guard his back, at the very least. But it was supposed to be a simple mission. The figures had been wrong, off by at least half the number of suits that had been there.  
  
Deathscythe would never be the same. He'd taken quite a beating at OZ's hands today. /I'll bet *he* could have handled it easily. *He* wouldn't have.../ The thought trailed off as he absently noticed something different about the hangar. It was smaller.  
  
It held five Gundams.  
  
Rational thought disappeared completely as he noticed a pair of spandex-clad legs leaning into the main panel of the obviously disabled Zero-One. The slight distance between them disappeared, quickly taken by Duo's silent strides. With a cat's grace, he scrambled up the side of the huge machine, not making enough noise to alert a mouse.  
  
It was more than enough noise to alert Heero. He turned suddenly, suspecting some sort of attack. Instead he found himself facing the ethereal creature who'd haunted his existence for so long.  
  
"Duo..." The word was barely a breath, but it easily transversed the air between them. The other boy stopped, unsure where to begin, what to say. Speechless for once.  
  
The moment was all Heero needed to come back to his wits. There were reasons he'd left the irrepressible braided boy. He could not afford to forget them now. He willed the shocked expression from his face, schooling his features into their normal, impassive mask.  
  
"Duo." This time, it was more of an accusation. The American flinched a little at the tone - That hadn't exactly been the greeting he'd hoped for. So he chose to ignore it, leaning in to capture Heero's lips in a tender kiss. He received no response.  
  
~I always thought that I would have the upper hand~  
~But now I know that I'm not really that strong~  
~If only I could make you understand~  
~I'd give you the world but for a start...~  
  
Chorus  
  
A frown furrowed his brow as he gently worried at Heero's lower lip, evoking a strangled sort of half-moan from the Japanese pilot. A tiny smile quirked at the edge of his own lips. *That* was more like what he'd hoped for. He felt the other's hands come up to rest on his shoulders...  
  
And abruptly push him away. Hurt, the smaller boy blinked in confusion. Something was not right with this picture.  
  
"Heero..." He was cut off by the other's smoldering glare.  
  
"This won't work, Duo." The words sounded harsh in the dead hangar. "Just save yourself a lot of trouble and leave." Duo sat back on his heels, hurt. Heero sounded so... final. But there... almost hidden in the corner of the other's eye, a faint glimmer of moisture gathered. He'd suspected as much. Heero didn't want to do this. The knowledge fueled his waning courage.  
  
"Heero, listen..."  
  
"I said..." The other's cold voice cut through Duo's thought. A spark of anger ignited into a raging flame at such cold treatment.  
  
"*I* said *listen*. It won't kill you to hear me out, you know." The angry boy interrupted Heero's interruption, taking a vague pleasure at the startled look on the other's face. "I don't know what sort of game you think this is, but I'm sick of playing along! This self-imposed exile of yours is *really* getting on my nerves. It hurts..."   
  
Heero's unreadable expression flickered, a fact which Duo latched on to with an unusual tenacity. "Yes, it hurts. It's been killing me this past month." He threw a sharp-eyed glance at Heero. "I know it's been hurting you too. So why do you keep it up? No..." He silenced the other's response before it began. "I don't want to know. I do know that you're better at handling the pain than I am. But I also know I'd be a fool to let it continue, now that you're back. I don't even care why you're back. It needs to stop, Heero... Please..." He grew quieter, exhausted by the emotions his outburst had brought out. "It has to stop. I know you're too strong... you won't ask. So I will. Let it end, Hee-chan. Come back to me..."  
  
Heero contemplated the smaller boy's words, watched his pleading violet eyes. He nodded slowly. "Mission Accepted." His lips quirked at the inappropriateness of the response, but he knew Duo understood. He wasn't sure why he'd ever thought he wouldn't. The smirk became a rare smile as he leaned forward, embracing the slight boy opposite him.  
  
Owari 


End file.
